SERIESLY THOUGH | REBECCA STUBBS DUOLOGY BY HANNAH BUCKLAND

THE VICAR'S DAUGHTER

(REBECCA STUBBS #1)

Rebecca Stubbs, the beloved daughter of a conscientious village vicar in Victorian England, has always enjoyed a sheltered, idyllic childhood. Her parents work tirelessly for their small farm community, aiding both the church and the poor. When an unexpected outbreak of fever rages through the town, Rebecca must face growing up alone.

As she matures into womanhood, Rebecca finds that she is ill-prepared for her new world. With no home, no family, and few prospects, she is determined to make her own way in life. As a housemaid at Barton Manor, she struggles to find her place in a world of double standards and man-made rules. Can she keep her faith strong amidst a lonely life of domestic service? Must she always be a bystander, watching other people s lives unfold and flourish? Or is there something else in store for her servant heart?

 ★★★☆☆

Rebecca Stubbs has grown up in a comfortable, somewhat privileged home as a vicar's daughter. At the age of seventeen, she tragically loses both parents just months apart. Wanting to maintain some sense of independence, Rebecca applies for a housemaid position at nearby Barton Manor. It's a definite lifestyle adjustment, to say the least! Rebecca struggles to keep up with all the little rules of the house. She's also sometimes befuddled by her boss's line of thinking. Rebecca finds herself being reprimanded one day for helping a co-worker with some household duties, being told that helping others with their work "undermines the structure of the household." Whaaa?! No good deed, right?!

The more I learnt about the internal life of the manor, the more I was surprised and perplexed at the way two groups of people could live in the same house, both mutually dependent on each other, yet hold one another in contempt. The servants were quick to secretly mock their employers, and the family viewed their servants as a necessary evil. The rules about our conduct in front of them seemed designed to reinforce the idea that we were beneath them. When I was sweaty from hard work and had permanently black nails from soot and I met a well-groomed, beautifully dressed, and sweet-smelling lady, I began to feel worthy of their disdain. I had to check these thoughts by reminding myself that my physical appearance only reflected on the honest, hard work I was doing and was nothing to be ashamed of.

What helps break the stress for Rebecca is her friendship with the manor's other housemaid, Emma. Their friendship was pretty cute, especially with Emma's sass and wit! Rebecca also fully utilizes the manor's library, which is where she meets and befriends Edward, the orphaned nephew of Master Davenport (owner of Barton Manor). Rebecca & Edward bond over not only both being orphaned, but also over their love of theology, philosophy and people watching. As the years progress though, Rebecca struggles with this friendship as she starts to feel more and more that Edward takes advantage of her loyalty to him. 

As Rebecca progresses from her teens into her twenties, the reader observes her learning tough life lessons, one being why people like to say "you can't go back home." When she tries to return to her hometown, she finds the feel of the old 'hood disturbingly different -- a new vicar in her father's place, neighbors significantly aged / ill, the village itself changing. She also learns important lessons in love. Regarding things like unrequited love / unreturned affections, she comes to see that there's typically good reason that those affections are not reciprocated and that if you hold out and have faith, you usually have things work out in your favor, in time. On the topic of friendships and relationships, I wish her friendship with Rev. Hayworth had been introduced earlier in the story, so it had more time to progress. He was brought in so close to the end, his character felt a bit like an afterthought to me -- which is a shame because I found him to be one of the best in the story! 

The story is enjoyable, but also pretty predictable. There is one very brief burst of violence in one scene that caught me by surprise but otherwise it unfolded just as I figured it would. Predictability aside, it had a fair bit of humor which I really enjoyed, one of the best being the description of a male guest to Edward's house (later on in the story) who seemed to get a little too grab-happy with the female staff so they started referring to him as "the octopus" X-D. My very favorite bit of the novel was Rebecca's time in a seaside village while she tries to recuperate from a severe cold.

I could see a good bit of Austen and Bronte inspiration within this plot. In fact, the Bronte sisters are even referenced at one point in the story. I could see many likenesses to this novel and Jane Eyre especially. So I would say if you are a fan of Jane Austen, the work of the Bronte sisters, the tv show Downton Abbey and faith-based historical fiction, this book might be a perfect fit for you! 

POTENTIAL TRIGGER WARNING: There is a brief mention of one character struggling with depression and later choosing to commit suicide. 

******************

DUSTERS & DREAMS

(REBECCA STUBBS #2)

One small village, three intertwined lives . . .

Rebecca has recently married vicar Jack Hayworth, but she must prove herself a capable wife to the village matriarchs. With her duties, events, and responsibilities, Rebecca is happy enough, but she secretly longs for a family. Must she stoically hide her heartbreak? Is it wrong for a Christian woman to struggle so much with unanswered prayers?

Edward owns a country estate, has a beautiful wife, and a profitable farm, yet he still feels dissatisfied. The world is changing outside of Biggenden Manor’s walls, and monotonous, high society life now leaves him empty. Can Edward find what he’s searching for in a differing world?

Violet is an outspoken, vivacious housemaid with a knack for getting into trouble with handsome men. She finds small village life oppressive and longs to spread her wings. Will Violet find the adventure and romance her heart craves?

 ★★★☆☆

In The Vicar's Daughter, we got to know Rebecca as a seventeen year old housekeeper at Barton Manor. As we get into the meat of the story there, we are introduced to Reverend Jack Hayworth, though the bond between he and Rebecca remains a mostly minor one until near the end of Book 1. 

Now here we are in the sequel, Dusters and Dreams. The plot has fast-forwarded a bit from where the first book left off. We're led to believe some extra bonding time occurred between Jack and Rebecca, because at the start of Book 2 she's already five months into her marriage to Jack. 

The early portions of this book deal with Rebecca settling in and adjusting to her new role as a reverend's wife: the duties, unexpected challenges, and sometimes unfair expectations that come along with the position. 

After three years of being a domestic servant, subject to the will and whim of her employers, Rebecca was now the mistress of her own home and delighted in her new role. Baking, cooking, ironing, and cleaning for one's own husband --- and an appreciative husband at that --- was a privilege, not a chore. After years of loneliness, Rebecca blossomed in the sunshine of Jack's love, laughter and company. 

The Hayworths' window of newlywed bliss is interrupted with the news that Jack is being given a promotion that is pretty much in name (title) only, but it still requires him to move from the cozy little cottage he and the missus have grown to quite like .... into the dark and dreary vicarage house of his predecessor.  Rebecca does her best to roll with the changes, but overwhelmed with the change in size of her residence, she submits to the idea of bringing on a housekeeper to help her out with some of the daily chores. In walks lively housemaid Violet. Violet and Rebecca were already a little acquainted with each other, as Violet also worked at Biggenden Manor, as a kitchen maid --- I'm not sure what happened to Barton Manor, all the history mentions this Biggenden place now, but the text reads as if it's the same place from the first book? Bit confused about that lol. 

Violet was recently scandalously dismissed from her post after she was discovered making out with one of her boss's houseguests. When the job in the Hayworth home is mentioned to her, she's skeptical, worried that "Spinster Stubbs", now the new Mrs. Hayworth, will be uppity. But need for money overrides all else, so Violet accepts. 

While all this is going on, the reader is also informed of Rebecca's struggles to conceive, and the pressure she feels when months --- and then years --- pass and the looks of pity and speculation increase among the congregation. After two years of trying everything, the couple decides to consult a fertility specialist...and let me tell you, this doctor was INFURIATING. Not only was his advice laughable and painfully backward (though probably not uncommon for the time) but even he even goes so far as to send Rebecca out of the room so he can suggest to Jack that she be institutionalized for even daring to question his medical advice! 

Thankfully, Jack is a man of sound mind and reason who was only to happy to tell this guy where to go! Even so, Rebecca is so desperate to have a child, she actually does go home and attempt some of the doctor's wacky suggestions, partly just to say she did indeed try everything.

The relationship between Jack and Rebecca is a large part of what brings such charm to this story. They are a lovely example of what true teamwork in a marriage should look like: They laugh easily together, bounce problem-solving ideas off one another, and are always seeking ways to make their partner's life easier. 

Sadly, things aren't so easy-breezy for Violet in the romance department. Violet is just young and craves romance and excitement to break up the monotony of life in the small town of Capford, but poor girl just keeps getting caught up with all the wrong kinds of men. At one point Violet even toys with the idea of joining a convent, but in due time both the stories of Violet and Rebecca come to reveal that sometimes in life the things you want most in life are right under your nose... if you can just stop searching the horizon so hard. 

Speaking of family, going after what you really want, etc... there's a side story involving the current owners of Biggenden Manor, Edward and his new bride, Sophia. While they look forward to starting a family, Edward also struggles with feelings of increasing dissatisfaction with high society life, not to mention the presence of an overbearing, opinionated mother-in-law. When Sophia does discover she's pregnant and the news reaches Rebecca, she's happy for the couple, but secretly it stings her as a crushing reminder of her own struggles. 

The doorbell rang and a maid attended to it, and it happened many times again. Safely closeted in his study, Edward listened to the cheerful hubbub of female voices and remembered that today the village charity knitting group was meeting in his parlour. How Rebecca had managed to persuade Sophia to open her doors to the gathering he could not imagine! Mrs Hayworth was turning into a real little vicar's wife, delegating here and twisting arms there in such a charming manner that one ended up agreeing to things without knowing it. Imagine if the country was run by women like Rebecca --- so much more would be accomplished in a far quieter and more reasonable way. A parliament full of determined women would be quite formidable --- but this was fanciful thinking! The only women in Parliament were the tea-ladies and the cleaners. Fancy the knit and natter group, as he called them, sitting in his parlour! They were probably putting the world, or at least the parish, to rights over a cup of tea, in a manner not unlike the House of Commons --- plus knitting needles. 

A Girl Knitting by Philippe Mercier (1689-1760)

While the Christian tones may read as heavy-handed to some who pick up this book, author Hannah Buckland's talents as a wordsmith prevent the sermonizing bits from being obnoxious or overtly preachy. All in all, the duology remains a cozy, sweet story of honest people going through real, everyday struggles that are timelessly relatable. 

There's also a bit of an education in just how much work goes into keeping a flock of sheep healthy!

FTC DISCLAIMER: Ambassador International Publishers kindly provided me with a free copies of these books in exchange for an honest review. The opinions above are entirely my own.